Rough Trade: A Shocking True Story of Prostitution, Murder, and Redemption

Early one morning in May, 1997, a young couple in the mountains of Colorado spotted a man dragging a body up a secluded trail. The man fled, leaving behind a bloody, dying woman. The investigation into the death of young street-walker Anita Paley would lead from that idyllic spot to the seamy underbelly of Denver and a world of prostitution, drug dealers, and violent criminals. And it would expose the lives of suspect Robert Riggan and Anita's friend Joanne Cordova, a former cop-turned-crack-addict and hooker.

Murder in the Family

On March 15th, 1987 police in Anchorage, Alaska arrived at a horrific scene of carnage. In a modest downtown apartment, they found Nancy Newman's brutally beaten corpse sprawled across her bed. In other rooms were the bodies of her eight-year-old daughter, Melissa, and her three-year-old, Angie, whose throat was slit from ear to ear. Both Nancy and Melissa had been sexually assaulted.

Abandoned Prayers: Murder, the Amish, and Little Boy Blue

On Christmas Eve in 1985, a hunter found a young boy's body along an icy corn field in Nebraska. The residents of Chester, Nebraska, buried him as "Little Boy Blue", unclaimed and unidentified-- until a phone call from Ohio two years later led authorities to Eli Stutzman, the boy's father.Eli Stutzman, the son of an Amish bishop, was by all appearances a dedicated farmer and family man in the country's strictest religious sect.

The Want Ad Killer

After his first grisly crime, Harvey Louis Carignan beat a death sentence and continued to manipulate, rape, and bludgeon women to death - using want ads to lure his young female victims. And time after time, justice was thwarted by a killer whose twisted legal genius was matched only by his sick savagery. Here, complete with the testimony of women who suffered his unspeakable sexual abuses and barely escaped with their lives and of the police who at last put him behind bars, is one of the most shattering and thought-provoking true-crime stories of our time.

Salt of the Earth

Joe Gere said he died on the afternoon his 12-year-old daughter Brenda disappeared. It was left to Brenda's mother Elaine to sustain her stricken family, search for her missing child, and pressure the authorities for justice. From the first minutes of the investigation, suspicion fell on Michael Kay Green, a steroid-abusing "Mr. Universe" hopeful, but there was no proof of a crime, leaving police and prosecutors stymied. Tips and sightings poured in as lawmen and volunteers combed the Cascades forest.

Failure of Justice: A Brutal Murder, an Obsessed Cop, Six Wrongful Convictions

Everyone felt the same way: Small-town Nebraska widow Helen Wilson didn't have an ounce of meanness in her body. Then, on February 5, 1985, one of the coldest nights on record, the unthinkable happened. The 68-year-old resident was murdered inside her second-floor apartment. But why?

American Murder Houses: A Coast-to-Coast Tour of the Most Notorious Houses of Homicide

From a colonial manse in New England to a small-town home in Iowa to a Beverly Hills mansion, these residences have taken on a life of their own, gaining everything from local lore and gossip to national - and even global - infamy. Here, writer Steve Lehto recounts the stories behind the houses where Lizzie Borden supposedly gave her stepmother "40 whacks", where the real Amityville Horror was first unleashed by gunfire, and where the demented acts of the Manson Family horrified a nation.

Silent Witness: The Karla Brown Murder Case (Onyx)

An account of the murder of Karla Brown describes how, after years of investigations, a prosecutor's brilliant courtroom strategies won a conviction against a long-time loser with a vicious hatred of women.

Every Mother's Nightmare

Reveals the harrowing story of two mothers, Jude Govreau and Mari Winzen, whose children were brutally killed by a vicious murderer, and recounts their efforts with a lone district attorney to bring the murderer to justice.

The Kuřim Case: A Terrifying True Story of Child Abuse, Cults & Cannibalism

In May of 2007, in a small, quiet town in the South Moravia region of the Czech Republic, a technical glitch - a simple, accidental crossing of signals - revealed a terrible case of child abuse, and an entire nation watched transfixed with horror as the grisly extent of the perversion of the maternal instinct was revealed. Two small brothers named Jakub and Ondrej, nine and seven years old respectively, were revealed to have suffered confinement, mutilation, psychological brutality, and cannibalism at the hands of several people.

Dance with the Devil: A Memoir of Murder and Loss

In November 2001, the body of a young doctor named Andrew Bagby was discovered in Keystone State Park outside Latrobe, Pennsylvania, five bullet wounds in his face, chest, buttocks, and the back of the head. For parents Dave and Kate, the pain was unbearable? But Andrew's murder was only the first in a string of tragic events.

Bitter Remains: A Custody Battle, a Gruesome Crime, and the Mother Who Paid the Ultimate Price

On July 13, 2011, Laura Jean Ackerson of Kinston, North Carolina, went to pick up her two toddler sons. It would be the last time she was seen alive. Laura's ex, Grant Hayes - the father of her two sons - and his wife, Amanda, the mother of his newborn daughter, both pointed the finger at each other as the one guilty of murdering Laura, cutting up her body, and then transporting and disposing of the remains on the shores of Oyster Creek, Texas.

Precious Victims: Penguin True Crime

The police in Jersey County, Illinois, accepted Paula Sims' story of a masked kidnapper who snatched her baby girl, Lorelei, from her bassinet. Three years later, her second newborn daughter suffered an identical fate - and this time the police were unable to stop searching until they had discovered the whole horrifying truth. This is the full terrifying story of twisted sexuality and hate seething below the surface of a seemingly normal family and of the massive investigation and nerve-shattering trial that made the unthinkable a reality.

Secret Lessons

This audiobook chronicles the shocking and appalling story of the handsome, popular, and energetic sixth-grade teacher in a Caseyville, Illinois, elementary school, who was accused of sexually abusing numerous young girls.

Murder in the Bayou: Who Killed the Women Known as the Jeff Davis 8?

Between 2005 and 2009, the bodies of eight women were discovered around the murky canals and crawfish ponds of Jennings, Louisiana, a bayou town of 10,000 in the Jefferson Davis parish. Law enforcement officials were quick to pursue a serial killer theory, opening a floodgate of media coverage, from CNN to the New York Times. Collectively the victims became known as the "Jeff Davis 8," and their lives, their deaths, and the ongoing investigation reveals a small community's closely guarded secrets.

Gitchie Girl: The Survivor's Inside Story of the Mass Murders that Shocked the Heartland

The sound of snapping twigs closed in on the five teenagers enjoying an evening around a glowing campfire at Gitchie Manitou State Park. The night of music and laughter had taken a dark turn. Evil loomed just beyond the tree line, and before the night was over, one of the Midwest's most horrific mass murders had left its bloodstains spewed across the campsite. One managed to survive and would come to be known as the "Gitchie Girl".

Kill Him Some More: Notorious USA

Welcome to Florida, the Sunshine State with a darker side than most. The mecca for wealthy retirees to enjoy their younger girlfriends, yachts, and marble-floored mansions, where recreational drugs, sex, and booze flow like the warm water that hugs the coast. Where teenage girls and their boyfriends kill their parents in the name of love, and women shoot their boyfriends then claim self-defense. New York Times best-selling crime authors Caitlin Rother and Gregg Olsen join to release this compilation of murder cases from the vacation destination.

If I Can't Have You:: Susan Powell, Her Mysterious Disappearance, and the Murder of Her Children

The tragic story of Susan Powell and her murdered boys, Charlie and Braden, is the only case that rivals the Jon Benet Ramsey saga in the annals of true crime. When the pretty, blonde Utah mother went missing in December of 2009 the media was swept up in the story - with lenses and microphones trained on Susan's husband, Josh. He said he had no idea what happened to his young wife, and that he and the boys had been camping in the middle of a snowstorm.

Too Pretty to Live: The Catfishing Murders of East Tennessee

When Bill Payne and Billie Jean Hayworth began their romance, they unknowingly set in motion a diabolical plot that would end with them murdered in their own home, Hayworth holding their mercifully unharmed infant. Chris was a CIA agent who was concerned about Jenelle. Seeing the cyberbullying she had endured, and worried for her safety, Chris got in touch with Jenelle's protective parents and her devoted boyfriend, warning them that Payne and Hayworth were a danger to Jenelle.

The Corridor Killer:: Delaware, Notorious USA

The first documented female serial killer in the US came out of the tiny state of Delaware, as did a signature killer who attracted FBI profilers. Political intrigue winds through an unsolved mystery in Wilmington while a high-powered attorney ruined his life to punish his mistress. Here we have poisoners, bludgeoners, and some privileged teenagers who killed their baby. The corridor state between New Jersey and Maryland might be small, but it has harbored some very dark characters.

The Stranger and the World's Bravest Little Girl: Notorious USA

A girl uses her wits to survive a maniacal killer who wipes out her family. A woman is condemned for the "final betrayal of motherhood" for killing her children. A grieving mother becomes convinced that the man convicted of murdering her beautiful teenage daughter is innocent.

A Killer Among Us

On March 16, 1992, Elizabeth DeCaro, a 28 year-old mother of four, was found dead in her own home, murdered execution-style with two bullets to the head. Her husband, Rick, was immediately a suspect, having previously struck her "accidentally" with the family van after taking out a $100,000 life insurance policy on her. A Killer Among Us presents the true shocking story of Elizabeth's family and their search for justice against the man who continued to play father to the children whose mother he had killed.

Publisher's Summary

New York Times best-selling author Gregg Olsen and true crime journalist Kevin M. Sullivan travel down a bizarre trail of murder into notorious Pennsylvania. A seemingly normal husband father of two decides to kill young girls after storming an Amish schoolhouse, and sex many have been the prime motivator. A young high school student has a secret desire for murder, and decides a middle-of-the-night visit to his best friend’s house will do nicely to satiate his hunger to kill. A seedy individual living in an even seedier part of Philadelphia decides to populate his basement with kidnapped women for sex and the bearing of children, and it is death to those who do not submit.

Only a small part of the listen was related to the amish murders. Want followed was two detailed accounts of horrifying torture and murder. I hope I don't have nightmares tonight. I finally did the adult thing and quit listening.

What could Gregg Olsen and Kevin Sullivan have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

They could have made the Amish schoolhouse murders. the focus of their book.

Would you be willing to try another one of Kevin Pierce’s performances?

I would recommend this audiobook to a friend!! If you like true crime, this is very interesting. The stories flow and you can clearly picture the story taking place.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Marie Roberts was my favorite character. Although the main story is not about her, you can't help but to feel some empathy for her. She woke up one morning and her life was normal. In that one day, not only did she lose her husband, but he committed a horrible crime, and she had to deal with the guilt of the crime that he committed.

What about Kevin Pierce’s performance did you like?

While Kevin spoke clearly, I did not think that he had a voice that would keep you interested while listening to a long book.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

There was not a particular moment that moved me. Each story brought out so many emotions. I would go from happy to sad to mad to revulsion.

Any additional comments?

The only thing that I would have changed about this book is the title. It is titled the Amish Schoolhouse Murders but there are 4 stories in all, not just the story about the Amish Schoolhouse Murders.